Argentina: A perfect storm?

Our Deputy Director of Analysis, Dr Jill Hedges, joined Canning House CEO Cristina Cortes for a webinar looking at the many difficult problems currently facing Argentina.

Jill discussed the interlinked economic, social and political challenges and how they may play out.

After two years of deep recession, Argentina now faces an even steeper collapse as a result of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on both the global and domestic economy. The focus is now on how the pandemic has hit all the sectors initially seen as possible drivers of recovery.

Lockdowns appear to have kept cases down up to now, but at great cost to economic activity and poverty rates; will the economic pain prove to have been in vain if cases spike as restrictions are eased?

This coincides with efforts to restructure some 66 billion dollars in debt which, if they fail, may see Argentina’s ninth sovereign default in coming days.